Irish industry avoided some €27 million in energy costs last year thanks to voluntary energy-saving measures, a new report reveals.
The figures were announced at the launch of the annual report of Sustainable Energy Ireland's Large Industry Energy Network (LIEN) today.
David Taylor, SEI
LIEN is made up of more than 80 of Ireland's large industrial energy users, collectively accounting for about 60% of Ireland's industrial energy use. SEI said member companies have avoided over 754,000 tonnes of CO2 equivalent since the scheme began in 1995.
LIEN is a voluntary networking initiative aimed at improving the management and efficient use of energy in their respective businesses. Members share information on energy-saving technologies and techniques to maximise savings and maintain competitiveness.
Each of them has an annual energy spend of around €4 million.
David Taylor, chief executive of SEI, commended member companies for the commitment they had shown in adopting best practice in energy management.
"This commitment is clearly underpinned by a realisation that energy efficiency is now a key business imperative for companies struggling with the mounting burden of rising energy costs."
"Recent data published by SEI has shown that Ireland is 87 per cent dependent on imported fossil fuels. This figure highlights the enormous competitive challenges facing industry and the economy as a whole.
"In this regard, companies involved in LIEN and SEI's other initiatives for industry, namely energy agreements and the IS393 Irish Energy Standard, are giving themselves the best possible chance of meeting these challenges head on and in doing so maintaining their competitiveness."